Smartphone overindulgence blamed for weapons snatching in Valley

Blaming overindulgence in use of smartphones by police personnel for spike in weapon-snatching incidents in the Valley, Jammu and Kashmir Police has banned use of such gadgets by its sentries during duty time. The order, issued by Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Armed, AK Choudhary, on Wednesday, said the tendency not only lowered the image of the police, but also compromised with personal security of individuals. “It has been observed that recent weapon-snatching incidents have occurred due to the reason that sentries on duty remain engaged with their smartphones…

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Nipah Virus infection contained, no need to panic: Centre

The highly contagious Nipah virus infected 18 and killed 11 persons in Kerala before it was contained, the Union health ministry said on Wednesday of the viral disease that has triggered panic in the southern state. Seven infected persons were being treated in isolation wards. Another seven, including three persons from Karnataka’s Mangaluru who travelled to the Nipah-hit Kerala districts, were under observation though they had not shown symptoms of the infection. “It was a highly localized infection and we have been able to contain it well,” health secretary Preeti…

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Govt can cut petrol prices by up to Rs 25 a litre, but will not: P Chidambaram

Congress leader and former union finance minister P. Chidambaram on Wednesday criticised the Centre for the fuel price hike and claimed that petrol prices can be reduced by Rs 25 per litre, but the government is not doing it. “It is possible to cut up to Rs 25 per litre, but the government will not. They will cheat the people by cutting price by Re 1 or Rs 2 per litre of petrol,” Chidambaran said in a tweet. Across the four metropolitan cities, prices rose around 30 paise on Tuesday.…

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Villages along IB turn into ghost towns as cross border shelling killed 5, displaced 90000

A week of relentless Pakistan shelling has driven 1,00,000 people from their homes in Jammu and Kashmir, reducing their villages to ghost towns and leaving their homes pockmarked, bearing the telltale signs of hostilities from across the border. Soonam Kundal is busy gathering her belongings at her home in Keso village, a few kilometers from the border. The 19-year-old is alone at home. On Tuesday evening, her father was curing a newly built boundary wall when a mortar shell landed in the compound of their house, injuring him, her mother…

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Fuel prices soar for 10th straight day, govt seeks long-term solution

Wednesday marked the 10th day in a row that fuel prices rose, to Rs 77.17 a litre of petrol and Rs 68.34 a litre of diesel in the capital, but law and information technology (IT) minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said a long-term solution is being worked out to address the price volatility. After a 19-day hiatus in the run-up to the Karnataka polls, the price of petrol has increased by Rs 2.54 in the last 10 days, and that of diesel by Rs 2.41. Consumers and opposition parties have been…

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Muscular policy on Kashmir is brainless policy: Yashwant Sinha

In an apparent swipe at the Centre, former BJP leader Yashwant Sinha today said a ‘muscular policy’ on Kashmir is a brainless one as muscles do not have brain. Speaking at an event to launch a book, written jointly by former chiefs of intelligence agencies of India and Pakistan – A S Dulat and Asad Durrani respectively besides author Aditya Sinha, he suggested India must talk to Pakistan in order to resolve the Kashmir issue. Referring to recent media reports, Sinha said Indian media says Pakistani Rangers are pleading for…

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Infamous human shield expert major Leetul Gogoi held with girl at Srinagar hotel

An army officer behind last year’s human shield case was handed over to the police after he was held by people with a girl at a hotel in Srinagar on Wednesday. Major Leetul Gogoi, who had tied a civilian Farooq Ahmad Dar of Chill-Brass village in Budgam district on the day of Srinagar Parliamentary elections in April last year was caught today by people with a girl from a hotel. A senior police officer told Kashmir Post that the major had booked a room at “The Grand Mamta” hotel in…

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Flying on Srinagar-New Delhi route is no longer an option for many travelers

The airfare on Srinagar-New Delhi route has gone up so high in the last few weeks that for many it is no longer an option to look at while making their travel plan. Students, sick people, and tourists are instead taking the old way of road travel or are simply cancelling their itineraries. A cursory glance at various travel portals indicated that the one way airfare from Delhi to Srinagar for the month of May is not less than Rs 10,000. While the same went for Rs 5000 a month…

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